Marketing

I am a partner in a small business. As the economy suffers, we are all in competition for the same dollars. Thus, we decide how to best spend our money....Internet, phone book, radio, sponsorships, ect.

One thing we have always done is to try to get out on an individual basis and mingle with people. We hope when they need our services, they will think favorably about us. We are always looking at ways to be out and be known for our services in the community.

However, lately, we have decided to do more. We are collectively taking time out of our work day, and paying our employees to deliver food to the elderly. We are start next week and i am so proud and thrilled to be a part of this. I have an elderly relative that could use this service if it were in her town. We are taking time to take a stand. We are taking time to give back without thought of what we will gain in return. (OK a tax write off, maybe)... but more importantly, we continue to establish that we care. We care about the people who work for us, we care about the people who hire us, we care about the people in our profession that we work with, and we care about people in this community. We care that our employees take time out of their lives to do for others and we hope they are enriched by the experience. We are giving them time out of their work day to volunteer.

I am excited and I hope everyone sees the real gift in giving to someone. Maybe marketing giving will be as trendy as "going green". And people will benefit.